Jets overwhelmed

ST. LOUIS – This was the punch that the Winnipeg Jets knew was coming, but just didn’t know exactly when it would arrive.

After taking a 2-0 series lead that featured much of the blueprint that made them the Presidents’ Trophy winning club during the regular season, the Jets made an unscheduled rest stop for repairs on Thursday as the series shifted to Missouri.

A woeful start put the Jets in a deep hole and they never fully recovered, resulting in an effort that included their Vezina Trophy winning goalie pulled for the first time this season after giving up six goals on 25 shots.

By the time the final buzzer had sounded, the St. Louis Blues announced with fervour that this series was far from over, handing the Jets a lopsided 7-2 loss on Thursday before a highly-engaged crowd at Enterprise Center.

“We lost the game in the first period. They scored two goals in the first three minutes, got on our heels, crowd got behind them,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel. “We were terrible in the first period. Game was over in the first.”

There’s no argument on that front, as the Blues got a pair of goals from Pavel Buchnevich – the first just 48 seconds in and the second on the power play.

Cam Fowler added a goal on the rush to cap the three-goal first and the Blues were off and running.

“They came out hard and physical. We knew it was going to happen,” said Jets forward Cole Perfetti. “I just didn’t think we were quite prepared and ready for it. It’s hard to come back from that (3-0 deficit). Next game, we’re going to have to come out way harder and start with that aggressiveness that they had. We’ll be fine. Not really worried about that. Just need to come out and have a better start.”

Starting better is a top priority but does the one-sided score make things any more difficult to come back from at this time of the season?

“You lose that game in overtime, you lose that game how we did, it’s the same result,” said Jets defenceman Josh Morrissey. “Playoffs are all about turning the page, learning lessons, and improving as the series goes on. So, we’ll look at the areas we need to improve. But our team’s done a great job all year of being resilient and bouncing back from games that aren’t us, so that’s our expectation over the next few days.”

The Jets still lead the best-of-seven series between Central Division rivals 2-1, with Game 4 scheduled for Sunday at noon before the series shifts back to Winnipeg for Game 5 next Wednesday.

Let’s take a closer look at this one:

THE CONTROVERSY

It certainly wasn’t the reason the Jets lost the game, but the call with 9:55 to go in the second period would have made things a lot more interesting had it gone the other way.

With the Jets on the power play, a one-timer from Cole Perfetti was stopped by Blues goalie Jordan Binnington.

Before the play was whistled down, Perfetti made a signal to the referees that the puck had crossed the line despite it being in Binnington’s glove.

“I saw his glove in the net,” said Perfetti, asked about the play in question. “Obviously, he made a great save but I was on the goal line and I saw his glove in the net and the puck on the mesh of the glove. And you see it pretty evidently in the video. Obviously biased. But yeah, I don’t know how much more they need to see the puck in the net.”

A lengthy video review occurred to try and make a final determination and although the overhead view appeared to show there was some white ice between the puck and the goal line, there was no conclusive view that showed it was completely across.

So, the call on the ice stood and the Jets still faced a three-goal deficit.

“I saw video on the bench that looked pretty evident. I mean, I don’t know what angle they saw,” said Perfetti. “From what I understand, they said they didn’t have an angle of it. Meanwhile it was on the scoreboard and their crowd kind of went ‘Ahhhh.’ Based on their reaction I thought it was in the net.

“I thought you could see the puck on its side in his glove and his glove in the net. I don’t know what else you got to do. If it wasn’t a goal, it was a good save. It would have been nice to get that one and get the power play rolling and get us back in the game. I thought it was a goal but who knows.”

Arniel had a slightly different stance on the situation.

“There was no clear-cut picture that showed the puck was over the red line,” said Arniel. “It looked like it, there’s lots of things that made it look like it was. But there was no perfect evidence that it was 100 per cent over the line. And obviously the call on the ice was no-goal.”

THE PULL

It doesn’t happen often, but Arniel got the hook out in the third period, pulling goalie Connor Hellebuyck after he had given up six goals on 25 shots on goal with 9:28 to go in the third period.

Eric Comrie came on to play the remainder of the contest.

“The game got out of hand,” said Arniel. “At the end of the day, just get (Comrie) some minutes.”

Hellebuyck has now allowed 10 goals through three games.

Nobody is pointing the finger at Hellebuyck for the loss, but there’s another level that the Vezina Trophy favourite needs to find as the series continues.

THE FOURTH LINE GOAL

David Gustafsson scored the lone even-strength marker for the Jets, converting a perfect pass from Jaret Anderson-Dolan after a burst of speed down the boards.

Morgan Barron also chipped in an assist on the play.

At a time when secondary scoring is imperative, it was the second goal in three games for the Jets’ fourth line.

On the flip side, the Jets’ second line is still searching for its first goal of the series.

Several scoring chances have been generated, but getting a bit more finish is something the trio of Vladislav Namestnikov, Nino Niederreiter and Cole Perfetti is looking for.

“We’ve created some momentum in the o-zone. Now it’s a matter of finding a way to create more high-danger chances,” Niederreiter said after the morning skate. “It’s something we want and demand from our line as well.”

THE SPECIAL TEAMS WOES

With the goal disallowed, the Jets’ power play continues to struggle to get unlocked in this series, with Winnipeg limited to two goals on the man-advantage through three games – including one during what was effectively garbage time on Thursday night as Neal Pionk ripped home a one-timer with his team down by five goals.

The power play that led the league this season with an efficiency rate of just under 30 per cent hasn’t been operating near full capacity for the better part of two months.

There have been some dangerous chances and some alterations have been made, but the goals have been tough to come by.

The loss of Gabe Vilardi and Nikolaj Ehlers to injuries has obviously been a factor, but there’s enough talent within the group to produce more – or at least generate a bit more momentum at five-on-four as the series moves along.

The Blues are having no such issues, as they’re up to six goals with the man-advantage through three games – including three more on Thursday (one from Buchnevich, one from Jordan Kyrou and a late one from Colton Parayko, who was a force in all three zones in this one).

THE KEY PLAY

Cam Fowler’s goal late in the first period capped a three-goal outburst and proved to be the game-winner.

THE THREE STARS

1. Pavel Buchnevich, Blues. Records his first playoff hat trick and adds an assist.

2. Cam Fowler, Blues. Had a goal and four assists.

3. Robert Thomas, Blues. Produced four assists.

THE LATE SCRATCH

There was a surprise absence from the Jets’ lineup on Thursday after defenceman Dylan DeMelo didn’t come out for the pregame warmup.

DeMelo, who suited up for all 82 games during the regular season, skipped Wednesday’s workout for what Arniel described as “maintenance” and actually took part in Thursday’s pre-game skate.

Arniel confirmed after the game that DeMelo was scratched due to an illness and that the Jets only found out around 4 o’clock that he wouldn’t be able to go.

With DeMelo out of the lineup, it opened the door for veteran blue-liner Colin Miller to draw in on the third pairing with Logan Stanley.

The absence of DeMelo meant that the pairings were a bit in flux during the contest, with Neal Pionk and Luke Schenn bouncing back and forth between Josh Morrissey and Dylan Samberg depending on the situation.

“I mean, listen, obviously you develop chemistry with your partner, but we’ve got lots of great players back there,” said Morrissey. “Definitely miss (DeMelo) out there. Hopefully he’s back Sunday, but at the end of the day, it’s like I said, that’s not an excuse.”

EXTRA, EXTRA

There was no extended standoff between Winnipegger Joel Hofer and Scheifele on this evening, as the Blues backup goalie departed the ice before trying to outwait the Jets’ centre.

The Jets other healthy scratches were goalie Chris Driedger, defencemen Haydn Fleury and Ville Heinola and forwards Rasmus Kupari and Dominic Toninato. Right-winger Gabe Vilardi skated in a non-contact jersey and continues to make progress as he works his way back from an upper-body injury.

The Blues also made a change to the lineup, scratching defenceman Ryan Suter and bringing Alexandre Texier in up front for his first game of the series. Suter appeared in all 82 games for the Blues during the regular season.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

X and Bluesky: @WiebesWorld